From the GREAT STATE OF MAINE...
Kicking the New Guy's Tires
Not many people know this, but over the years two Daily Kos front-pagers---"NewtsMyMan" and "GoneGalt4Evuh"---have been exposed as frauds and booted, thanks to C&J's interview series, Yes, We're All Staring At YOU!. Although we think the newest Contributing Overlord Editor, Steve Singiser, is on the up and up, we're not taking any chances. Let's find out if he can withstand a few minutes under the harsh glare of the tiki torches...
Cheers and Jeers: How long have you been blogging and what originally brought you to Daily Kos?
Steve Singiser: I was a non-posting reader of DK for about a year before I finally jumped in the deep end of the pool during the late Summer of 2005. It was right around the time of the Ohio 2nd special election, and I just found it incredibly cool that there was a site with a large number of folks who were, like me, interested in a House special. I have always been an elections junkie of the highest order, so this place felt like home pretty darned fast.
You're a social studies teacher. What's the key to making that subject interesting to your students?
I have found that creative profanities are a real bonding agent between the students and I. No, seriously...I tend towards the anecdotal when I teach government. The concepts themselves are fascinating to me, but for people who aren’t abnormal, they can be less than scintillating. Taking real examples from life, both inside politics and out, gives the topics a level of relevance and interest that they might not have on their own.
Do you favor year-round education versus the prevalent ten-months-on, two-months-off system?
Heh...that is a really bad question to ask me at the end of June. Right now, I am down for six months off, to say nothing of two months. I can’t speak for education across the nation, but in our area I doubt that there are many kids who are really "off" for two months. Students are either taking classes in the name of remediation (making up classes that were failed or underperformed) or advancement (our district allows students to get ahead in summer session). I don’t know how you’d do those things in a year-round schedule, but then again...I’ve never worked in one.
Good gravy...your bio says you have nearly 6,700 songs on your iPod. What kind of music makes you feel invincible to the GOP horde?
Wow...I don’t want to exhaust the entire front page with one answer, so I’ll truncate it. I listen to everything, and my shuffle on iPod has gone from Richard Marx to Westside Connection to Pearl Jam before. I’ll limit myself to a top five. From my youth/college days: Faith No More (who just reunited...Woo Hoo!!). From the last five years: a fantastic LA band called Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. For lifetime achievement: U2 and Pearl Jam. For politics: a tremendously underrated 80s/90s band named The Call. Trivia fun fact: two of the bands have a familial connection: the lead singer for The Call and the bassist/singer for BRMC are father and son.
At Daily Kos your specialty is news and analysis on elections and campaigns. In terms of the 2010 midterms, what are the must-watch races people should be paying attention to now?
In the Senate, I think most of the attention is on Pennsylvania and Florida. Why not? Big states, potentially explosive primaries. But expanded control of the Senate or, conversely, contraction of our majority, is going to come elsewhere. Democrats have to be wary of Connecticut, Colorado, and Delaware (if Castle gets in). Democrats have to be very optimistic about their chances in Kentucky, Missouri, Ohio, New Hampshire, and North Carolina. There are a lot of potential knife-edge races in the Senate. If we can get the wind at our backs again, 65 seats is not totally out of the question. In the House, I think that the Democrats will have to play some defense, but watch where they decide to play offense. I love that the Democrats were able to snag top-flight candidates in PA-06, DE-AL, and FL-10. That shows that they are not just trying to hold onto their '06 and '08 gains.
What's the one book every Kossack must read?
I know I should name some great policy treatise, but I go with heart and gut here. Every Kossack should read Molly Ivins Can’t Say That, Can She? by the late and perpetually great Molly Ivins. Great high school teachers and professors made me enjoy history and politics. Molly made me love it, and see it in an entirely different way. I never cease to be amazed, when I read and re-read her work, how capable she was at joining real activist zeal in her work with a sense of humor. Good lord, she was truly one of a kind.
You're head coach of your school's track and field team. Are there any overlapping strategies to winning that can be applied to both tracking/fielding and politics?
Two concepts. One: work ethic divides the good and the great. Two: great teams will beat great individuals. You can smell "DGAF" candidates or athletes a mile away---while they may show flashes of brilliance, they simply do not last for the long haul. Talent gets you to a certain plateau, but how hard you are willing to work is what lets you keep climbing. On the teamwork thing, great staffs make great teams. I am blessed to work with incredible assistant coaches. They make us one helluva lot better than we would be if I ran the show solo. The same applies to campaigns. Everyone from the campaign manager down to the kid volunteering at the phone banks needs to buy in.
Finish this sentence: In the kitchen I make a mean...
Mess of things, which is why I don’t cook very often. Actually, I make a pretty decent chili, courtesy of my Texas mom’s recipe. It is not heart-healthy, but it is pretty damned good.
How would a mild-mannered social studies teacher/blogger/head coach fix the California economy?
Ditch the two-thirds rule for passing a budget. Our biggest problem is not that we are headed in the wrong direction, it is that we’re not going in any direction. We’re perpetually stuck in neutral around here, because any budget needs 54 votes out of 80 in the state Assembly. So, a handful of GOP Assemblymen can strut around like they're running the show, because they are. Make it a majority to pass a budget. If the voters don’t like the budgets put forth by the Democrats, they can vote our asses out. But this perpetual stalling eventually ended by a weak compromise budget is just freaking absurd. If the Republicans want a say in the budget, let them win some elections.
No waffling here: dogs or cats?
I’d say dogs, because we have one and my wife is allergic to cats. But my dog is a tiny little yipping machine that I am convinced the rescue people sedated before we went to the doggy fair, because that was the only time in about three years that I have ever seen her calm and mellow. So...I'm going to say hamsters. My daughter’s hamster Mimo hasn’t caused us a lick of trouble in a year.
I have one question left, but the pest-control truck just arrived---Susan Collins is nesting under the porch again. Please ask and answer the final question yourself...
You have been a Contributing Editor for just over a month. What is the toughest part of the job?
Well, let me tell you—the hazing from the senior Contributing Editors has been brutal. Wearing the bright red fright wig 24/7 has been bad, because it really scares my children. It’s a little tough to take Cody and Makenzie running away from me, all the while screaming "Daddy’s a scary clown!!!" But having to fly across the country cleaning all their houses has been a real burden. I mean, seriously, some of these guys have...like...three-room apartments. Do they really need to be cleaned every other day??!!??
Cheers and Jeers starts in There's Moreville... [Swoosh!!] RIGHTNOW! [Gong!!]
Cheers and Jeers for Monday, June 22, 2009
Note: You know why Republicans are so much better than Democrats at being dishonest? They have better lie ability insurance.
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By the Numbers:
Days 'til Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation hearings begin: 21
Days `til the Rothbury Festival in Michigan: 10
Number of Californians who took the real estate exam in March, 2005: 18,000
Number who took the exam in March, 2008: 2,030
(Source: The LA Times via The Week)
Number of states that have legalized pot for medical purposes: 13
Number of states (including Maine) that have decriminalized possession of small amounts of pot for personal use: 12
(Source: AP)
Percent of Bush administration political appointees who are currently unemployed: 70%
(Source: Harper's Index)
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And now..."Pimping Pittsburgh!"
Brought to you by the Netroots Nation Convention August 13-16 (part of the agenda has been posted at the web site):
Four Pittsburgh-area Firsts
First Banana Split---1904
Invented by Dr. David Strickler, a pharmacist, at Strickler's Drug Store in Latrobe, Pennsylvania.
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First Heart, Liver, Kidney Transplant---December 3, 1989
The first simultaneous heart, liver and kidney transplant was done at Presbyterian-University Hospital.
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First Zippo Lighter---1932
George G. Blaisdell invented the Zippo lighter in 1932 in Bradford, Pennsylvania. The name Zippo was chosen by Blaisdell because he liked the sound of the word "zipper" - which was patented around the same time in nearby Meadville, PA.
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The First Internet Emoticon---1982
The Smiley :-) was the first Internet emoticon, created by Carnegie Mellon University computer scientist Scott Fahlman.
---From Pittsburgh.net
Later this year, Pittsburgh doctors will attempt the first heart, liver, kidney, banana split, Zippo lighter transplant. :)
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Puppy Pic of the Day: (via Pastor Dan) Puppy Cam!
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JEERS to Cluster-You-Know-What in Iran: Day 10. High-profile insiders continue to find themselves split over bogus election results and protests that threaten to pry open the iron grip of the Supreme Leader in Tehran. Some think that a hard line is the way to go, with no room for patience or negotiation. Others contend that a more moderate and cool-headed approach is best. It's very, very tense, and it's far from certain which camp will prevail. But one thing's for sure: it's fascinating to watch the savage infighting among the high holy men. For what it's worth, my money's on Pat Buchanan over John McCain. Yeah---I do kinda feel nauseous saying that.
CHEERS to one very gay day. Nestled in between two of the shittiest weather days of the year (torrential rains Friday and howling winds with drizzle yesterday) was a brief window of perfection---partly sunny and 75 Saturday afternoon for Portland's Pride parade and festival. It was awesome. It was historic. It was amazing. Not because of the record turnout or the excitement over passage of Maine's new marriage-equality bill (although those were both cool). No, I'm talking about the fact that the local paper, bucking tradition, published a photo of a reveler flamboyantly strutting down the street in a tutu and angel wings---and for the first time it wasn't a dude. How...refreshing.
CHEERS to supporting the troops. Sixty five years ago today, President Roosevelt---he of the Democratic Party---signed the GI Bill. It rewarded servicemen for their sacrifices with low-cost loans, educational subsidies and other benefits. Kind of like what George W. Bush wanted to do for veterans during his presidency...minus the low-cost loans, educational subsidies and other benefits. Because he cared.
CHEERS to heckling Hoekstra. When the not-too-bright Republican congressman from Michigan posted a tweet that read, "Iranian twitter activity similar to what we did in House last year when Republicans were shut down in the House," his readers wasted no time bringing on the mock. Such as:
i spilled some lukewarm coffee on myself just now, which is somewhat analogous to being boiled in oil
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Someone walked in on me while I was in the bathroom. Reminded me of Pearl Harbor.
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ran through the sprinklers this morning, claimed solidarity with victims of Hurricane Katrina
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I got a splinter in my hand today. Felt just like Jesus getting nailed to the cross.
And those were just the ones from his wife.
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Gong! Gong!! BuddaBuddaBudda... GONG!!!
This is another edition of The One Word Answer Man. In yesterday's edition of Doonesbury, Garry Trudeau asks:
And Teddy Roosevelt, perhaps mindful that Washington and Lincoln forbade torture, ordered the court-martial of a U.S. general accused of waterboarding. Later, after World War II, the U.S. prosecuted Japanese interrogators for waterboarding. There was no debate about it being a war crime. Why then, do half of all Americans now believe torture can be justified in certain circumstances? How could any circumstances be more dire than World War II, when 60 million people perished?
Dunno.
Now back to Cheers and Jeers.
Gong! Gong!! BuddaBuddaBudda... GONG!!!
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JEERS to kickin' a guy when he's down. A resident of Minnesota who was getting evicted from the home he'd lived in for 53 years was afforded the ultimate indignity last month---city inspectors accidentally boarded him up inside his house. Officials apologized for the mistake---they said they'd gotten Ted Poertsch's residence confused with Norm Coleman's old senate office.
P.S. Um, Minnesota Supreme Court? [Tap Tap] Care to explain why you're sneakin' out the back door with those fishin' poles? Bad justices...[Swat!]...Bad!
JEERS to punishment via dumbstick. On June 22, 1633, Galileo Galilei was told that he had to "abjure, curse, and detest" his view that the earth revolved around the sun. Let's review the church's decree, shall we?
The proposition that the Sun is the center of the world and does not move from its place is absurd and false philosophically and formally heretical, because it is expressly contrary to Holy Scripture.
The proposition that the Earth is not the center of the world and immovable but that it moves, and also with a diurnal motion, is equally absurd and false philosophically and theologically considered at least erroneous in faith.
It took the Vatican over 350 years to admit their heads revolved around their asses. Gee, why the rush?
CHEERS to the shaky legacy of John Joseph Houghtaling. When it comes to American pop culture, there aren't many things that can top the Magic Fingers vibrating bed, which provided countless travelers with several minutes of "tingling relaxation and ease" for the bargain-basement price of a quarter. Houghtaling has died at 92. His headstone will bear a disclaimer: "Relax, it’s not an earthquake---it's just me."
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Five years ago in C&J: June 22, 2004
JEERS to lazy journalism. To commemorate an especially tumultuous year for gay rights, Southern Maine stages its largest gay pride parade in years. The Portland Press Herald's coverage? Nada. (But thanks for the front-page story on the Jehovah's Witness conference.)
CHEERS to SpaceShipOne. Pilot Mike Melville blasts a three-seater craft up 62.2 miles, twirling and whirling his way into history before punching a gravity-defying, mankind-sized hole in space and looking into the face of God...and his own soul!! What, too dramatic?
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And just one more...
CHEERS to little eggheads. Hey, Moshe Kai Cavalin! You just graduated from college with an A+ average at the age of 11. What are you gonna do now...go to Disney World?
Enroll in summer school next week and start working on his second AA, this time in math. His first was in liberal arts. He completed the course work with a perfect 4.0 grade-point average. After that, Cavalin plans to transfer from the two-year school to a four-year college and study astrophysics.
Close enough.
Oh, and a special shoutout to Rep. Jim McDermott's office manager: "Mornin', Liz!" Floor's open...What are you cheering and jeering about today?
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Today's Shameless C&J Testimonial:
"Do me a favor. Could you say 'Bill in Portland Maine' instead of 'Ma'am?' It's just a thing...I worked so hard to get that title, so I'd appreciate it. Thank you."
---Senator Barbara Boxer
6/18/09
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